Turns out my sister has one. Just saw her.
The beer is very good, and she said it was easier than you'd think, but not as easy as the box makes it sound. Guess the worst part is the sterile environment. Everything that will touch the beer at any stage must be bacterium - free. One thing you forget to wash, and it'll taste funky I guess.
The whole thing looks time consuming, due to the sterilization proceedures, but the rest is straightfoward. You get this can of motor honey (that's the best way I can describe it, it's an extract of the malt and hops), a packet of sterilizer powder, a packet of yeast, and 'booster' to increase alcohol. You just sterilize the plastic fermenter with a half packet of sterilizer (along with everything that will touch the beer) - like washing dishes in the stuff. Then you put the ingredients into a pot, stir it, bring it to a boil, put water in the fermenter, add the wort (the boiled brew), and seal it up. Let it sit for 14 days.
After that, you bottle it. You sterilize/dry the bottles (pop bottles plastic or glass, or used glass beer bottles) put about a 1/2 tsp of sugar in each bottle to get the carbonation going, and you cap it. Then you let it sit in either the fridge or in a cellar-like place for another 14 or so. Then it's ready!
This is what I've read. Like I said, sounds easy. Time consuming, but easy. Hope I don't get it contaminated. I'll let you know the results in a month!
Till then, think I'll get one of those mini kegs........
